Recent storms throughout California have caused a slight setback in the strawberry season. While prolonged rain has the potential to further hamper this year's crop, it's expected production will rebound quickly from this week's weather.Before this week's rains, the season was going well, according to Carolyn O'Donnell of the California Strawberry Commission. Quantity of picked fruit was up as the season approach peak volumes.
“We're about five million trays ahead of last year,” says O'Donnell. “The issue now is the weather. It depends on how much rain we get, how long it lasts and where it falls.” If fields get too much rain, there's a danger the fruit will get moldy or become too fragile for packing and shipping, so growers are hoping recent rains aren't too extensive.
“It's kind of a hit or miss thing right now,” she says, “we won't know for about a week.”
Cindy Jewell, marketing director at Cal Giant, doesn't think rains will significantly damage fruit. Current storms might set back production for a while, but they shouldn't affect the season in the long-term.
“Thankfully, the rain has been intermittent,” says Jewell. “Strawberries rebound quickly this time of year, so the outlook is good for next week.” She adds that the temporary dip has made for good prices for growers. The USDA reported prices for a flat of strawberries to be between $10 and $12 for April 12.